The Boy Who Sold His Soul to the Devil in Chicago
by chicagofxre
Summary: Two years ago, Christopher Herrmann was murdered in the back of Molly's bar. Now Gabby's relationship with Matt is at risk when she decides to help Lee Henry Herrmann escape gang life. With her drive and determination, Gabby will stop at nothing to make sure that Lee Henry is safe, even if that means risking her own life.
1. Turf Wars

**Author's Note** : Hi everyone! This is my first time writing a fanfic, but I've been watching Chicago Fire for as long as I could remember. I'm very open to constructive criticism and advice. This chapter is a tad bit shorter only because I wanna see how it does for Chapter 1. Thanks so much and I hope you enjoy!

 **WARNING!:** The theme of this fanfic is to show the life of someone who has been exposed to gang violence and drugs. If this material offends you, I **HIGHLY** suggest you do not read my work. I've tried to make everything in this story as accurate and realistic as possible. I do not live in the Chicago area so my locations could be a little off, but I tried lol. I wanted to make this because I have personally seen the impact of addiction. I wanted to help break the stigma of addiction and add a new perspective through this story.

 **Chapter One**

 _ **{4x09}**_

"Gabby! Get us another round!" Boden ordered cheerfully,

"Coming right up, Chief!" Gabby and Otis happily poured alcohol into the little shot glasses with the Molly's logo on them.

Molly's had been _packed_. Everyone from Firehouse 51 and the Friday night crowd gathered into the bar to simply have fun. This night was strictly for celebration, and nothing was going to get in the way of 51 having a good time. (Especially when beer was involved.)

The shots kept coming and coming. Gabby had to confess she even had a few after Otis convinced her to break Herrmann's number one rule:

Never drink on shift.

If only she listened to him.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

The night got older into the wee hours, and eventually only a few members from 51 remained.

"Damn... what time is it?" Kelly groaned as he put his head down onto the smooth wooden bar top.

Gabby was mindlessly washing beer mugs in the bar sink as Otis snored sitting at the table across with Cruz on his phone and Mouch drunkenly staring off into space.

Gabby rolled her eyes at Otis agitated.

"Hey? Need some help?" Matt offered hopping over the bar.

"Yeah, that'd be nice. Glad my co-workers are helping with this mess." She sarcastically complained.

"If I could remember, Herrmann left and that's when we trashed the bar?" Casey was getting a headache from trying to recall everything.

Gabby was absolutely right even though she had been drinking. Molly's was an absolute mess. The bar smelled like puke, beer spills were everywhere, broken glass was spread all over the floor, and Otis, Capp, and Kelly had to be woken up. Boden, Donna, and Patterson left at one point but neither of them could really remember when.

"Kelly it's 3:45 in the morning."

"What?" Kelly just groaned louder.

"You asked what time it was." Casey added,

No response.

"What're you laughing at?' Gabby caught Casey chuckling as he dried off the freshly cleaned glasses.

"I don't really know, tonight was just one of those nights we'll be laughing about for a while." Casey emphasized.

"If anyone even remembers it..." Gabby smirked as she gazed into Matt's eyes and reached in for a kiss.

"What the hell?"

Gabby and Matt turned to see Brett coming back from the bathroom.

Brett seemed to be the only other person who wasn't blatantly drunk other than Casey and Dawson.

"What's wrong?" Matt asked concerned. They saw Brett lift up one boot as red liquid dripped from it.

"Gabby..."

Dawson and Matt quickly ran to her aide and examined the puddle that was coming from the supply room door..

"Gabby, that's blood..." Brett said softly.

Matt tried softly pushed on the door, but something was blocking it.

Dawson's heart sunk as she ran behind the bar and then into the supply room.

Matt immediately called 9-1-1 as he watched Brett catch up to Dawson.

"What's going on Matt?" Cruz was beginning to sober up and Mouch was now snapping back into reality.

"I-I-don't know," Matt stuttered, "There's blood, I don't know what's going on."

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Oh my God..." Dawson's legs froze. Her throat swelled up and she couldn't breathe or talk. Brett immediately turned around and couldn't stomach the sight in front of her.

Dawson's heart dropped as her shaking body made her way closer to the bloodied limp body in front of her. She put her trembling fingers onto his cold skin and felt no pulse. She kept them there, hoping to feel something.

The only thing she could focus on keeping her fingers on his pulse. Gabby felt light-headed and her vision was dizzy. She could only see Brett throwing up in the corner, and the sirens she heard began to become muffled.

"Gabby, let go..." Matt was telling her softly as he put his hands on her shoulders and slowly pulled her off of him. She hadn't blinked and looked absolutely empty with his blood all over her new shirt that she was so happy to wear tonight. She didn't notice the time that went by, she didn't notice the police force that was ready to begin their investigation, she didn't notice her brother's tear stained faced. All she could notice was the knife that was covered in a crimson blood.

"Please, get her out of here." Antonio begged as he and his squad began their investigation.

Matt nodded and slowly guided her out leaving Antonio to his work.

"Who's the vic?" An assistant officer asked trying to get a head-start on the case,

"Christopher Hermann." Antonio answered quietly as his own words pierced through his heart and the rest of the Intelligence Unit.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

 _ **{Present Day}**_

Cordova left the table to make sure the trucks were ready for any calls that the day would bring.

"Goddamn, that dude is a little bitch."

"Lyon, chill out." Severide was annoyed already, and it was only fifteen minutes into shift.

"And watch your mouth too." Casey added.

Keon Lyon slumped back into his chair in the common room. Brett glanced at him in pity from across the room and felt the same way when she looked at Cordova. She glanced at the long scar on his neck, but it didn't distract her from his light brown skin that caused his grey eyes to glow.

" _Why is everyone around here so cliquey_?" She pondered to herself,

Her thoughts were soon interrupted by the alarm calling for Truck 81, Squad 3, and Ambulance 61 to respond to some kind of disturbance. Brett was always frustrated about how vague the information was.

On the way there, Gabby could tell something was off with her best friend.

"What's wrong, Brett?" She asked sternly,

"Nothing. Why?" She snapped back. Gabby was silent for a moment

"Got it... It's that time of the month. I'll leave you alone."

"Shut up!" Brett laughed, "It's just that Cordova guy. Who knows how long he's going to stay? Everyone around 51 always treats new guys like they're bad or something. Keon has been here for like a year and a half and everyone treats him like he pissed in their cereal."

Gabby smirked.

"What? You know I'm right!"

"Umm, you've had a crush on Keon since he walked in on his first shift. You just want an excuse to talk about him" Gabby mentioned,

"That has nothing to do with it, Gabby." Brett said murmured to herself.

Gabby immediately was caught off guard with her tone and started to see what she was saying. She just decided to leave it alone until they could talk at the firehouse. Brett was clearly upset.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Firehouse 51 parked in a col-de-ac near 10th street. The neighborhood was gloomy and humid and the house that called was boarded up with wooden planks on the window and the roof looked like it could collapse any minute. There seemed to be no signs of life between the few houses until a man opened his door waving for them to come near him.

"Sir, what seems to be the problem?" Chief Boden strolled up to the panicked older man standing in his doorframe claiming to be the one who called 9-1-1. His forehead was absolutely drenched in sweat. Dawson and Brett approached him with their aid kit.

"No, no! It's not me. I'm fine! A man was just shot in my backyard. Scared the life out of me!" His arms were shaking as he wiped his forehead with his handkerchief.

"I didn't know the fire department would show up, hopefully you guys can get him out of here safely." The old man led Boden, Casey, Dawson, and Brett through his cluttered home to the backyard. The rest of Squad 3 and Truck 81 stood watch in the front yard waiting for the police to show up.

The man in the backyard began screaming in pain as Dawson and Brett ran to his side. But before they dropped down to help him, they glanced at Boden.

The "man" was no older than twenty and was wearing a blue bandana that represented the Simon City Royals. The gang had been recently having turf wars with People Nation up in North Chicago.

"Be quick." Boden ordered nervously as the gang member began to scream again.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Chief, need any help?" Cruz radioed Boden after hearing screams.

"We'll be out asap. A gang banger was shot in this guy's yard. I want us out of here as quickly as possible. Keep your heads up. I'll let you know when we're on our way."

"Got it, Chief." Cruz replied.

"Why didn't the damn police show up? We have axes not guns! Besides, why are we even responding to a call in North Chicago?" Lyon stated obviously,

"I heard a bus caught fire on the turnpike and a bunch of units responded leaving us with this mess. Let's just not complain and hope they don't come back. To finish the job" Kelly ordered hushing the much younger fireman.

Cruz approached the older man who just got done asking if they wanted any green tea.

"Sir, did you hear any other shots?" Cruz asked curiously,

"Please, call me Dean. Dean Links." Cruz shook his wrinkled hand firmly.

"Truth be told, I have insomnia. I fell asleep for a few hours, and minutes after I awoke I heard the shot. I'm not so sure what happened before that. I called my neighbors and they told me to immediately call the police after they saw some boys running around their yard. These damn hoodlums." Dean shook his head.

Cruz was furious that this man had no idea what was going on but couldn't blame him for not having knowledge on gangs. They may have just gotten called into the middle of a turf war.

"Chief, we have to go, now." Joe radioed to Boden anxiously. "On our way out now." He replied back. Dean said his thanks to 51 and slowly made his way back into his smaller, run-down home.

"Where are the police?" Cruz ran up to Boden angrily, "There was that bus accident near Logan Square and they're having trouble getting to us," Boden was annoyed as well. After Dawson and Brett were sent on their way to Chicago Med, everyone hurried into their trucks.

Before anyone could even open a door, a swarm of gang members dressed in red began shooting across the street at men dressed in blue.

Boden and Cruz took cover behind Boden's car, and everyone else hid behind the trucks.

"They're fighting with People Nation!" Cruz shouted over the gunfire to Boden, but he simply didn't care who was fighting with who. He just needed to get his men out of here.

Behind the trucks, everyone stood still trying not to flinch at every gunshot.

"Kelly, what the hell do we do?" Stella's voice trembled, "They know we're here and they're leaving us alone." Kelly answered calmly,

"Kelly is right. They don't want anything to do with us, guys. We just need to wait this out." Casey yelled to his men reassuring them with safety.

They could hear sirens in the distance after five more minutes of shooting went by. The gangs were beginning to scatter and flee but took some final shots.

Two members of the Simon City Royals ran by Cruz and Boden, running as fast as they could. A few last shots pierced the air, and one of the two men were shot. They face planted right into the ground dropping their silver shining gun that slid across the hard concrete. The other gangster didn't even look back.

Cruz and Boden looked at each other wondering if they should help him. Their idea was immediately shut down when the gangster slowly but surely regained his balanced as he pressed on the gunshot that grazed his arm. He grabbed his magnum and turned back to Boden and Cruz.

The gangster had brown hair that was lightened by the sun with eyes that matched the same color as chestnuts. He was tall with broad shoulders and looked like he was in pristine physical shape.

Boden's eyes locked with the gangster's, and Wallace could see right through that blue bandana that hid the true identity of this boy. His heart sunk and he was having trouble focusing as the boy ran off leaving a trail of blood behind him. Boden shot up as fast as he could and ran after him

"Chief? What the hell?" Cruz yelled, but immediately joined his chief in the pursuit.


	2. 42

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **Author's Note:** Thank you so much for reading Chapter 1! I apologize for any typos, and I promise that won't happen often. I also wanted to point out that Lee Henry made a guest appearance in last night's episode, and my version of him may be different than his actual description on the show. Of course, he's in an episode right after I post Chapter 1 lol! If I would've known, I would have described him more accurately in this fanfic.

 **Warnings:** Minor Language

 **Enjoy!**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

They could hear sirens in the distance after five more minutes of shooting went by. The gangs were beginning to scatter and flee but took some final shots.

Two members of the Simon City Royals ran by Cruz and Boden, running as fast as they could. A few last shots pierced the air, and one of the two men were shot. They face planted right into the ground dropping their silver shining gun that slid across the hard concrete. The other gangster didn't even look back.

Cruz and Boden looked at each other wondering if they should help him. Their idea was immediately shut down when the gangster slowly but surely regained his balanced as he pressed on the gunshot that grazed his arm. He grabbed his magnum and turned back to Boden and Cruz.

The gangster had brown hair that was lightened by the sun with eyes that matched the same color as chestnuts. He was tall with broad shoulders and looked like he was in pristine physical shape.

Boden's eyes locked with the gangster's, and Wallace could see right through that blue bandanna that hid the true identity of this boy. His heart sunk and he was having trouble focusing as the boy ran off leaving a trail of blood behind him. Boden shot up as fast as he could and ran after him

"Chief? What the hell?" Cruz yelled, but immediately joined his chief in the pursuit.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Can we talk?"

Brett turned to Dawson who looked a bit concerned for her.

"I guess," Brett sighed, "Antonio and I didn't work out at all. Keon was always there when I needed someone to vent to, and I'm the only one who even knows anything about him." Brett answered furiously.

"What do you mean?" Gabby was trying her best to look at the road. The gunshot victim in the back was perfectly stable after it only grazed his left side. They were in no hurry to reach Med.

"Do you know anything personal about Keon? Like where he grew up, what he did before being a firefighter?"

Gabby realized she didn't know much about Keon. All she learned over the year and a half of working together was that he very stubborn on calls and didn't listen very well. He had some sort of anger problem, and Gabby could always see that he was desperate to "fit in" with everyone else. She didn't really know why she never got to know him. Maybe it was because they went through a dozen floaters to take Herrmann's spot, and she eventually stopped caring about what new guy showed up for shift. Keon Lyon ended up being the only tolerable floater that landed at the firehouse.

"Exactly!" Brett could see Dawson was thinking long and hard on her relationship with Keon. "No one in 51 has taken the time to know him, and it pisses me off! He's a really sweet guy." Gabby usually always laughed when Brett got mad, but not this time. Her thinking was soon interrupted by gunshots that cracked through the air.

"Was that coming from 10th street?" Brett asked nervously trying to see something from the ambulance mirrors,

"I'm turning around." Gabby halted to a sudden stop that shook the whole ambulance. She could hear their gunshot victim from the back yelling and complaining that he wanted to be let go.

"Gabby, what the hell are you doing? We have to take him to Med!"

"He's fine," Gabby replied firmly, "Someone who needs us more could be hurt. Just radio in for backup." Brett immediately grabbed for her radio.

Gabby was starting to sweat nervously as her hands were sticking to the steering-wheel. The shots were still thundering through the air but they were getting louder and louder as they got closer. A memory of Matt getting shot when the firehouse was taken over by a gang popped into her mind.

When they were about to turn on 10th street, a figure suddenly ran in front of the ambulance, which was going about 30mph. The figure toppled on the hood, cracking the glass which shattered onto Brett and Dawson. Gabby's reflexes caused her to hit the brakes and caused them to go into a screeching halt throwing the figure off 61 and onto the black concrete. Dawson was shaking like an earthquake as blood trickled from the temple of her face.

"Shit, Gabby...not again..." Brett mumbled as she threw her head into her hands.

"Did I just kill someone?" Dawson thought to herself. She convinced herself that this would be the end of career since this is the second time hitting someone. Gabby was thrown back into reality when she heard Boden's deep roar that was calling her name.

"Are you guys okay? What the hell happened?" Cruz looked at the two from the window and quickly opened the ambulance door that read Leslie Shay.

"Come on, let's get you guy out of here." Cruz assisted Gabby out of the car as Brett was able to do it on her own.

"I... I don't know what happened..." Gabby's voice was rattling,

"It's okay, it wasn't your fault." Cruz gave a concerned look to Brett. All he wanted to do was give Sylvie the tightest hug and never let her go, but he had to keep Gabby company until Casey came. She was clearly more shook than Brett.

When Brett exited the ambulance, she ran to Boden who was crouched down beside the idiot who decided not to look both ways.

"He has a pulse. We need to get him out of here," Boden ordered as he ripped off the blue bandana that covered the boy's face. Brett ran to the back of the ambulance to grab more supplies.

"Yo, what the hell is going on here? I need to leave! Bitch, I got things to-" Brett slammed the doors after grabbing what she needed leaving the antsy gunshot victim to himself again.

Cruz had taken Gabby to the sidewalk and tried his best to calm her down. She wasn't talking much, and just wanted Matt to show up. She felt a weight leave her after Cruz informed her that no one from 51 was hurt.

Brett thoroughly examined the guy they hit. He was deeply unconscious with shards of glass that stuck to him all throughout his body. His hair was doused in crimson blood that oozed from the back of his head. She lifted up his baby-blue hoodie to find that purple bruises were beginning to appear on his upper body. She was also concerned about a thicker piece of razor sharp glass that was impaled into his right thigh.

"Chief, are you okay?" Sylvie froze for a second. He wasn't answering. Boden was simply in trance glaring at his face.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 _"Thanks for doing this, Wallace. I really couldn't thank you enough."_

 _"Thank me for what?" Boden replied with laugh as he adjusted his deep blue tie in the mirror of the men's room at St. Peter's church._

 _"For wanting to be Lee Henry's godfather."_

 _"Did you really think I would be an asshole and say- 'No, Chris. How dare you ask me to be his godfather? What a despicable question!" Herrmann laughed at his sarcastic remark._

 _"Is Randy still mad?" Boden added,_

 _"Oh please, he's the one who scheduled a trip for Wyoming to meet his girlfriend's parents. I promised him he had dibs on the next kid."_

 _"How long you think they'll stay together? They're moving pretty quick." Boden laughed at the thought of Randy actually committing to a relationship._

 _"Who knows? My gum typically lasts longer than his relationships. I give it two more weeks."_

 _"Alright, alright. That's enough shade on him. You ready to get out there?" Boden nudged him in excitement._

 _"Yeah, yeah. I just want to get to the restaurant." Herrmann mentioned as the two made their way back to the alter where Cindy stood with eight-month old Lee Henry._

 _"Wow, Lee Henry. I'm glad your father and soon-to-be godfather decided to show up to your baptism." Cindy smiled sarcastically,_

 _"Well someone was feeling a bit self-conscious and had to retie his tie, which he doesn't know how to do." Herrmann pointed to Boden,_

 _"Hey! I didn't want to look all sloppy in the pictures. I have to keep sharp." Cindy and Herrmann both laughed._

 _Boden took a look at Lee Henry, who was remaining perfectly calm. "I guess he didn't get his dad's blue eyes?"_

 _"Nah, they're as brown as the Hudson River."_

 _"Christopher..." Cindy nudged him. "What? I didn't say anything." Herrmann mumbled._

 _The baptism began as the priest made his appearance. After gospels and prayers, all the attention was brought to the godparents._

 _Wallace Boden stood there a bit awkwardly as he could feel the stares from the crowd while Cindy's sister who was chosen as the godmother remained perfectly calm._

 _"Godparents, Wallace and Katie, are you ready to help the parents of this child in their duty as Christian parents?"_

 _"We do."_

 _Herrmann smiled proudly at Boden as he felt a rush of joy run through his bloodstream._

 _"Chief?" Herrmann asked quietly,_

 _"Boden?" He asked again but much louder. Boden wanted to answer, but it felt like tape was covering his mouth causing him not to be able to yell back._

 _"Chief!"_

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Chief!" Gabby was shaking his shoulders. Wallace blinked a few times before he realized that he was back on 10th street. The feelings of fear and confusion poured back into him.

"Are you alright?" Dawson obviously knew he wasn't as she watched the sweat drip from his forehead.

Boden was sitting on the curb with blood smeared all over his hands as sunset peered over the city of Chicago. He couldn't remember what happened to Lee Henry. He couldn't even remember when or why he was sitting on the curb.

"What happened?" He whispered,

"Brett left with Ambulance 33 and you were just sitting here," Gabby looked at her watch. "It's been almost an hour since that. We've just been here getting interviewed by police." She sat down next to him on the curb. Police were scattered all over the block and 51 wanted to get the hell out of there, but Boden wasn't budging. Everyone was too scared to approach him, but Gabby took on the challenge after giving him time alone. She had been interviewed about hitting the man, but the police let her off the hook knowing she was Antonio's sister, and that the man ran in front of them. It would've been impossible to not hit him.

"Alright, I need to go make sure Brett is okay." Boden quickly shot up and made his way to his car. Dawson trailed behind him as she signaled for 51 to head back to the house.

Boden started the engine as Gabby plopped into the leather passenger seat before he could pull away.

"I'm coming with you. Something is going on and you need to tell me right now." Gabby glared into his eyes intensely. He didn't have a chance arguing with her and knew he had to tell her.

He began to pull out of 10th street right behind Squad 3 but made a left heading to Med.

Gabby's phone vibrated in her back pocket.

 _Matt: "Everything okay?"_

 _Gabby: "We're just headed to Med to make sure Brett is okay. Talk to you later._

After driving for a few silent moments, Boden stopped at a red light.

"You have to call Cindy."

"Cindy Herrmann?" Gabby knew what Cindy he was talking about as soon as he said her name, but she was caught off guard.

"When was the last time you talked to her?" Boden asked almost like he was interviewing her. The light turned green and he began driving again.

"I don't really know... I think I texted her after _The Real Housewives reunion episode_... that was like six months ago. Why?" Gabby was trying to put her memory back together. To Gabby, Cindy was that good friend you used to be really close with. You would talk all the time, but suddenly went different paths and grew more distant by the day. You talk every few months, and every conversation always ends with " _We need to get together soon!_ " But it never happens.

"Please, just call her." Boden sounded desperate and upset. Dawson was scared as she stared at him for a moment before pulling out her phone and dialing her number.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"So... he's going to live?"

Will Halstead looked at him and could tell he wanted answers.

"Yes, Mr. Quinn- The Fruit Loop stuck in your son's nose caused no physical damage. Although mentally he may never want to eat Fruit Loops again."

Mr. Quinn and his wife laughed and thanked him. Will led the family to the front of the hospital with their four-year-old son to finish some paperwork.

Will was finishing his own paperwork when two familiar voices arguing came through the front hospital doors.

"Hey, guys. What's going on?" Will inquired cautiously seeing that the all- too-familiar Firehouse 51 members were upset.

"Did you receive any victims from the 10th street turf war today?" Gabby spoke very fast as she interrogated Will.

"Yeah... a whole bunch. Why?"

"We need to see a list of names. Now." Will may not have not known Gabby as well as others, but he did know that she was stubborn and always wanted her way. He knew he couldn't release these names, but the tense stares from Dawson and Boden were enough to scare him.

"Come with me," He led them to a more desolate hallway nearby with an iPad containing all of the victims from earlier.

"Here, you guys can take a look." He handed them the thin device quickly knowing he could get into serious trouble for this.

"There's like seven John Does on here?" Boded confirmed,

"They were either unconscious or refused to tell us their names. Most of them are getting picked up from CPD later tonight to be brought for processing."

Boden nervously looked at Gabby.

"Did you happen to see any of these gang bangers? We're looking for a white male, brown hair, brown eyes, about 6'1, thin and strong build? He got hit by a car."

Will thought to himself. "I think I may have. Today was real busy and my memory is a little fuzzy. You might want to go ask Dr. Rhodes upstairs. I think he operated on someone with that description today." Will felt bad for not being much help, but he was hoping Connor could help.

Dawson and Boden quickly thanked Halstead and ditched the elevator for the stairs.

"Wait." Boden grabbed her arm before they entered the stairwell.

Gabby crossed her arms already getting pissed off at whatever he was going to say.

"I'm sorry. I should've told you Gabby. I should've done a lot of things..." Guilt and embarrassment made up the tears in Boden's eyes as he waited for her stay something. Anything.

"You need to apologize to Cindy, not me. What the hell is wrong with you?" Gabby threw her arms up furiously.

"I don't know! I was scared... I didn't know what to do!"

"So, you blatantly ignore her for two years? She needed you! You were practically a second father to their kids. What the hell happened after the funeral? You treated them like they were dead too."

Anger was boiling inside of him. "What about you? I don't see you keeping tabs on them either?" They were both now screaming at each other causing a scene.

"At least I called." Gabby muttered to herself as security approached them. They simply just said they were done arguing and were let go.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Wallace was sweating like he just ran the New York City marathon in mid-July. He wasn't used to all of these feelings. He always had the upper-hand and to be scolded by one if his own firefighters was embarrassing and made him feel vulnerable. He was guilt-ridden about yelling at Gabby, but he couldn't control himself.

During the funeral, he promised Cindy he would always be there for the newly widowed mother.

He never spoke to her.

Cindy and Lee Henry would call, but he ignored it. Wallace couldn't figure out why he did this and felt guilty thinking about it. Every time one of those two names popped up on his phone, he was reminded of Christopher and went into a depression. After his best friend's passing, he would suddenly have these bursts of anger that would send him into an uncontrollable spiral of violence. He never ever harmed a person, but any wall or piece of furniture would feel the wrath of Wallace Boden when he snapped. Donna had gotten sick of picking up his messes and forced him to see a weekly therapist. He was prescribed pills, but often refused to swallow them and lied to his therapist weekly about his pill intake.

"Dr. Rhodes!" Gabby spotted him in black scrubs and it looked as if he was prepping himself for a surgery.

"Ah, Gabby Dawson and Chief Boden. What can I help you with?" He was walking to the operating as the two followed right next to him.

"Can we have a second of you time?" Boden was annoyed at how fast Connor was walking and had to use a slight jog to keep up.

"I'm kind of busy right now," Connor implied sarcastically, "Can it wait like six hours?"

"Listen," Gabby stepped in front of blocking his way. "Dr. Halstead said you treated a white male, 6'1, light brown hair, and was hit by an ambulance?"

"He was also shot in the arm." Boden added, "What?" Gabby was puzzled. Wallace forgot to mention that...

"Are you guys family or something?" Connor huffed annoyed,

"I'm his godfather." Boden answered. Connor thought to himself for a moment.

"Whatever, it works for me. He's in room 42. Now I really have to go." Connor brushed past them without any thought.

"Well he seemed happy to help..." Gabby rolled her eyes as they made their way to room 42.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **Thank you for reading Chapter 2! Chapter 3 will be posted soon next week. Make sure to fav, follow, and review! Have great weekend!**


	3. Bro's Night!

**Author's Note:** Thank you for your patience with this chapter! School got a little crazy, so I had to take a little break. Now that I'm almost done, I have more time to write.

 **Enjoy!**

"Hey, does anyone know when Brett is coming back?" Keon wondered as he and the rest of Truck 81 and some of Squad 3 sat in the common room continuing their day normally.

"Casey said Boden was going to go pick her up from the hospital or something." Stella mindlessly answered as she read the newspaper,

"Why?" Cruz added harshly,

"I don't know... I was just wondering." Lyon answered confused,

"You got somewhere to be with her?" Cruz raised his voice,

"What? No! I was just making sure she was okay. Sylvie was just involved in something traumatic. I would want someone to check up on me if I was in her situation," Keon blushed.

"Oh _please_ ," Cruz laughed at what he was hearing, "You don't know a single thing about _'traumatic experiences'."_ Cruz was now standing up at the table mocking the younger fireman.

"Bro, chill out..." Otis said quietly to Cruz. Joe looked at Otis for a second who was sitting next to Lyon and was absolutely dumbfounded that his best friend told him to back off.

"Whatever." Cruz huffed as he made his way to the locker room furiously. Otis got up from the desk with his cane and hopped after Cruz.

The common room was silent.

"What the hell was that?" Kidd asked baffled by what she just witnessed. Keon slumped into his chair embarrassed.

"Hey, it's okay. Cruz is a little crazy sometimes." Capp gave Lyon a reassuring smile and put his hand on Keon's shoulder to comfort him.

" _Get your hand off of me_." Keon whispered infuriatingly. Lyon's fuming grey eyes and deadly stare was enough to send chills through Capp and he returned his hand to his side in milliseconds.

Keon jumped from his chair slamming the book he was reading onto the table as everyone held their breath until he was gone.

Kidd was trying really hard not to laugh as she covered her face with the newspaper.

"The hell you laughing at? That guy is psycho!" Capp pointed in the direction that Keon left in.

"You looked so scared," Stella was now blatantly laughing at Capp, and Mouch started to giggle from the couch.

"Ah, you guys are the worst!" Capp got up smiling a little and headed back to the Squad 3 table.

Otis entered the locker-room.

"Wanna talk about it?" Otis asked as he saw Cruz sitting in front of his locker.

"No," Cruz responded callously, "Don't you have some desk work to do?" Joe looked at Otis who looked a little upset by his words.

"Got it..." Otis mumbled to himself and strolled out of the locker room with his cane back into the common room.

"What was up with him?" Kidd asked curiously with a smile on her face.

"I don't know. He's being an ass."

Kidd's smile faded as she saw Otis' face was red.

"Did he say something to you?" Kidd was building up irritation at Cruz.

"Yeah, but it's fine. You just have to leave him alone when he's mad."

"Otis, that's not right. You didn't do anything to him."

"It's fine." Otis gave a face to Stella that read just to leave it alone.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Captain, we need to talk." Keon Lyon peered his head through Casey's office door.

"Sure. Come on in." Matt dropped his pen and swirled his chair around to face Lyon who was sitting at the edge of his office bed.

"I need to transfer."

Casey's welcoming smile turned to a confused frown. "Explain?"

"What do you mean _explain?_ Can't you see I don't fit in here?"

"So, you wait almost two years to tell me you don't fit in here?" Casey crossed his arms in annoyance. Hell, he knew Keon didn't get along with many people but Casey saw potential in him. Boden had gotten complaints from Cruz, Severide, and even Casey within the first two months of him joining 51. Chief quickly dismissed all of them and claimed that they just didn't want to face the reality of a new permanent firefighter. Casey decided to be a mature adult and learn to like Lyon (which was no easy challenge), but Cruz and Severide wanted nothing to do with him.

"Listen, I know you wanted me out of this house as soon as I got here. I dealt with that by not building chemistry with you guys, and it's something that I regret every day because I don't feel comfortable here. I'm not trying to brag or anything, but I think my behavior has greatly improved in the past couple months after I started going to anger management."

"And for that, I'm really proud of you." Casey had noticed Keon's slow change in attitude and behavior right away. "Why don't you come by for dinner tonight at my place and have a _real_ conversation. I can get to know you, and you can get to know me. It's my job as your captain to know my men and I'm sorry that I've also lacked on my chemistry with you."

Keon was a bit hesitant but agreed.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Are you ready for this?" Gabby and Boden stood in front of room 42.

"Gabby, what if he's in a coma? What if he's never going to wake up? What if they had to amputate his leg or something? Dr. Rhodes didn't mention his condition at all." Boden's mind was drifting off picturing what could be behind the door.

"There's only one way to find out." Gabby sighed,

"Alright, let's do this." Boden was ready to face Lee Henry.

The police presence outside room 42 gave them the clear as Gabby opened the door.

Gabby and Wallace were expecting the worse, but when they walked in, they found Lee Henry perfectly conscious drinking a Capri-Sun.

"Ughhh," Lee Henry groaned throwing his head back, "I knew you guys would find me eventually."

A wave of relief came upon the two even though he didn't seem too happy to see them.

"We're so glad you're okay!" Gabby went right in to give him a hug. He didn't refuse, but he didn't hug her back.

Boden was as awkward as ever and he felt real jittery.

"Is your mom here?" Boden asked,

"Why do you care?" Lee Henry snapped back slurping on his Capri-Sun.

"We just really want to see her. It's been awhile." Gabby was sitting beside Lee Henry on his hospital bed and was trying to break the tension between him and Boden.

Lee Henry rolled his eyes. "If you wanted to see her so badly then either of you would've simply just _came to see us._ " Christopher always appreciated Lee Henry's smartass comments.

"I know, Lee Henry. We're really sorry, and I promise we'll talk about all of this. But first, we need to know you're okay?" Gabby told him,

"I'm fine. I just have a concussion with a few broken ribs and some deeper cuts from the glass. I also have to wear this dumb sling for a couple weeks."

"No internal bleeding?" Gabby interrogated nervously,

"No."

"No brain-damage?" She continued,

"No."

"No other broken bones?"

 _"No."_ Lee Henry rolled his eyes,

"No amputated leg?" Gabby smiled,

"Nope. Still got it." Lee Henry laughed.

"I'm really sorry I hit you. I can't believe you don't have any serious injuries." Gabby hugged him once more.

"It's okay. I'm not really expecting an apology from you." Lee Henry glared at Boden who was sitting on a chair in the corner fidgeting with his hands.

"I think I need some water..." Boden quickly got up feeling Lee Henry's stares as he closed the door behind him.

As soon as he got into the hospital hallway, he bumped into someone almost knocking them over.

"Excuse me, I'm so- ...Cindy?" He couldn't even recognize her. She had looked like she had lost an unhealthy amount of weight, her hair was much longer and unkept, and her eyes were severely bloodshot.

"Hi, Wallace..." She said softly not making eye contact with him.

He was stunned at how much she changed.

"Is Lee Henry okay? I need to know before I go in there." Cindy pleaded for an answer.

"He's absolutely fine. Gabby is with him now," He reassured her, "I really want to talk to you about everything."

Cindy looked at him doubtfully.

"Please? Can we just take a walk before you go in there?"

"Fine, but this can't take long. I really need to see my son."

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Time passed and the moon glowed throughout Chicago. Back in room 42, Gabby and Lee Henry continued to catch up.

"-Yeah, so Matt and I got married."

"I'm really happy for you guys, you deserve it. My dad would always talk to me about how difficult you guys were with each other." Lee Henry grinned,

"Oh really?" Gabby laughed, "He called us difficult?" She teased,

"Yeah he'd always be like _'Damn, they're both just playing games with each other. They need to just get married already._ ' and stuff like that." He did a spot-on impression of his dad.

"He would've been so happy to see you guys get married." Lee Henry added. Gabby's laugh went quiet.

She switched to a very serious tone. "I'm so sorry I wasn't around. It was so wrong of me. We all should've made a better effort to stay close with you guys..." Gabby looked down on the ground in remorse with teary eyes.

"I know, but I forgive you. I'm just glad you're here now." Lee Henry gave her a reassuring smile.

"So, what's been going on with you? How's college?" Gabby asked curiously. Lee Henry was quite for a few seconds as he thought about what to say.

"I'm not in school." He answered faintly,

"What?" Gabby didn't believe him.

"I, uh... it didn't work out."

Gabby looked at him dumbfoundedly as they heard a knock on the door. Dr. Rhodes walked into the room.

"Gabby? Is this who you were looking for?"

"Yeah, he is."

"Mind telling me his name? He keeps refusing and the police need to talk to him." Connor said in an agitated tone. Lee Henry looked to Gabby nervously.

"I'm not telling him..."

"It's okay. Just please tell him who you are and we'll figure this out." She ordered him,

"Uh, Dawson? Since you're not technically family, I can't have you hearing this discussion. I'm sorry but I have to ask you to leave."

"What? No! She stays." Lee Henry ordered,

"Trust me, I'd let her stay if she could but I can't." Connor genuinely wanted her stay since he didn't have a guardian around yet.

"It's fine," Gabby looked angrily at Dr. Rhodes, "I'm going to come stop by tomorrow, okay? Just tell him your name. Once he knows he you are, he'll understand." Lee Henry nodded as Gabby gave him a hug and left room 42.

She leaned back on the door for a moment and sighed. All she wanted to do was be there for him and make up the time she missed.

Dawson got into an elevator and made her way towards the hospital entrance to leave. She looked at her phone and saw a dozen messages from Matt but she was too tired to read them. So many questions were going through her head. " _Why wasn't he in school? Why didn't Cindy show up? Where the hell did Chief go? Why was Connor such an ass sometimes?"_

She exited the elevator and the calling of her name broke her thoughts.

"Gabby!" Antonio ran up to her cheerfully,

"Hey, Antonio. What're you doing here?"

"I'm just here arresting some punks from the shooting today. A couple of them were being released tonight so Voight and I came to help pick them up."

Gabby's heart fell into her stomach. She totally forgot that Lee Henry was going to be arrested soon, and that's why he wouldn't tell Rhodes his name.

"Oh God, Antonio, we need to talk. _Now."_ Her voice was shaking and it sounded like she was going to start crying as she dragged her brother and brought him to the side where no one could hear him.

"Gabby what the hell? Are you okay? What's going on?"

"Christopher Herrmann's son, Lee Henry, was involved in the shooting today and I accidentally hit him with the ambulance and that's why he's here. Chief Boden told me that Lee Henry is involved in that gang, but you can't arrest him, Antonio! _Please_. He didn't do anything..." She was talking so fast as tears streamed down her face and Antonio was so confused.

"Gabby, it's okay. Calm down." He leaned in to hug her but Dawson wouldn't let him.

"Antonio, please promise me that he stays out of jail."

"I can't just _not arrest him_. It's my job! I can't promise you anything." He was frustrated with the situation he was just put into.

"It was also your job to find Freddy but look at how that turned out..." Gabby answered back callously. Antonio stayed quiet as he looked down to the ground in guilt.

"You know you owe it to Lee Henry. If you couldn't put his dad's killer in jail, then at least keep Christopher's son out of there."

Every word Gabby spoke about Freddy shot Antonio with regret and guilt. She looked at her vulnerable brother for a moment and left him there without saying goodbye. As soon as she was out of sight, Antonio sent his fist through the wall out of rage.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Matt was an absolute mess. He had pots and pans all over the kitchen and all of his food was burning and tasted awful. He was making Italian, but the food was so poorly made that you couldn't even make out that it was meant to be Italian. He had called Gabby a dozen times to tell her to get takeout, but she wasn't answering.

"Hey? Do you need any help?" Cruz called from the living room,

"Nope! I'm fine!" Matt yelled back as he wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve as he ran back and forth around the kitchen.

In the living room, Cruz had been sitting awkwardly with Severide for about half an hour. They didn't mind being with each other, it was just weird that Casey invited them to dinner so last minute.

"Do you know what this is about?" Severide asked,

"No... I have no clue. It's weird." Cruz replied,

"Wanna leave? We can go to Molly's like we planned?"

"Don't be an ass, Kelly. Casey seems to be working really hard in the kitchen for us..." Cruz and Severide both listened to hear what sounded like a tornado in the kitchen. The two then heard a knock on the door and Casey answered it. They heard a familiar voice as Keon Lyon came into the living.

"Seriously, Captain?" Once Keon saw Kelly and Joe, he walked right back out of the living room to Casey. Matt came back with Keon wearing Dawson's cooking apron that was pink with white polka-dots with his hands on Lyon's shoulders as he pulled him back into the living room.

"It's Bros Night!" Casey smiled, but the three looked at him with straight faces, "Dinner will be ready in five." He added and cheerfully made his way back to the kitchen.

Keon sat down on the chair across from Severide and Joe and the three sat in awkward silence.

"That's it, I'm out of here." Kelly stood up and made his way to the door,

"Kelly Severide, sit your ass down at the dinner table. _Now_. All of you get in here!" Matt had his hands on his hips and Kelly pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of him.

"If that's what will get you to stay, so be it. Take all the pictures you want." Matt snapped back as he put the food on the table.

Seconds after Casey, Severide, Cruz, and Keon sat at the table, Dawson came in.

She looked around confused, and then saw the four sitting at the table. "Uh, I didn't know we were having company, Matt?"

"It was a last-minute thing, babe. Come sit." He got up, kissed her on the cheek and got her a plate of "pasta".

The five sat in an awkward silence as they picked at their food, but no one except Matt was actually eating it.

 _"Maybe if I just ask to go to the bathroom and then sneak out the window I could meet Stella at Molly's..."_ Severide was planning to himself,

 _"Joe has a booger in his nose and I'm about to throw a box of tissues at his face. God, I can't stand this guy. Look at him eat! Who eats like that?"_ Keon shook his head back and forth and sighed,

" _I am such a better catch than Keon. How could Brett even be in the same room as this guy? I'm like a 10 compared to this guy who's like a 4... If he makes a move on her I'll 'accidentally' spray him with the firehose next call..."_ Cruz stared at Keon in disgust,

" _Why the hell are all these guys in my house?"_ Gabby thought,

" _I think this is working out pretty well..._ " Matt smiled to himself proudly,

"So, since tonight is Bro's Night along with Gabby, I thought we could go around and play _Here's Three Facts About Me That Will Help Me Get Along with My Coworkers_?" Casey suggested,

"Wow, Casey. Was that your favorite game growing up?" Severide rolled his eyes sarcastically. Casey ignored his comment and offered to go first.

"1) I look for honesty and integrity in my firefighters.

2) Going to the bar with all my coworkers is my favorite thing to do after shift, and lastly,

3) Penguins are my favorite animal."

"This is ridiculous," Keon rubbed the top of his head annoyed, "I really appreciate what you're doing here, Captain, but it's not working."

"I think I'm just going to head to Molly's for a drink while you guys just sort this out..." Gabby got up awkwardly,

"Nope! No one gets to go to Molly's if I can't." Severide grinned as Gabby fell back into her seat with her arms crossed.

"Wow! Look at the time!" Keon exclaimed sarcastically as he stood up and pushed in his chair, "My girlfriend is totally wondering where I am at this hour!"

"It's 8:30," Kelly replied,

"Well, she's all pregnant right now, and her hormones are out of control. So, before she freaks out I want to be home by 9:15."

"You're having a kid?" Casey asked,

"You have a girlfriend?" Cruz scoffed.

Keon rolled his eyes at Cruz. "Yep, and that's why I better go. Thanks for dinner, Captain. It was a lot of fun...I guess..." He then walked out the front door.

"I'm going to head to Molly's for a little bit, I'll call you later." Gabby quickly followed out the door,

"Me too! Thanks Matt, Bros Night was a real success!" Severide followed Gabby and then door shut.

Matt rubbed his forehead out of annoyance. "You can leave, Cruz."

"What? Look at all this garlic bread! I'm not leaving until all this food is gone, and the kitchen is spotless."

Casey smiled as he and Cruz finished Matt's "dinner".

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

Gabby and Severide walked into Molly's together. It wasn't too crowded, but there was still a decent amount of people for a weekday.

Gabby immediately went to find Brett. She had to let her know that Keon had a pregnant girlfriend, and she didn't want to see Brett do something stupid to ruin her friendship with Keon.

She quickly made her way through the people and up to the bar. Otis was bartending and asked her if she wanted a drink. Brett was sitting a few seats over and turned her head around to see Gabby.

"Brett! Brett, we need to-" Gabby approached her but was surprised to see Antonio close next to her with his hand on her thigh.

"Um, never mind..." Gabby quietly said, and Antonio's face went red.

"Sorry, Gabby. We were just...uhhh... catching up!" Brett was waiting for Antonio to say something, but he stayed quiet with his eyes glued to the ground.

"What did you want to talk about?" Brett said with a smile trying to get rid of the awkwardness as she turned away from Antonio.

"Oh, nothing. It was just something with Keon."

"Keon Lyon?" Antonio asked,

"Yeah, the one who works with me at 51." Brett replied as she took a sip of her beer.

Antonio scoffed. "I don't know how he's been at 51 for this long. That kid is trouble."

"What do you mean?" Brett eyebrows furrowed and it was almost like she took offense to Antonio's attitude about Keon.

"He used hang with a gang up north. Keon was our prime suspect for a couple gang-related murders, but we never had enough to charge him. Did no one ever tell you this?" Antonio was surprised at their stunned faces.

"No! No one ever told us that he might be a killer! How the hell is he even a firefighter?" Brett was now out of her seat raising her voice.

"Sylvie, relax. He was never convicted of anything. Just try to stay away from him the best you can. He still could have connections to his whole gang and I don't want either of you getting hurt." Antonio put his hand on Brett's shoulder.

"Why wouldn't you tell me this almost two years ago when he started working with me?" Brett was really upset. Otis was trying his best to ease drop on the conversation, and so were Stella and Kelly who were sitting a few seats down.

"I thought you knew! I can't believe Boden didn't say anything to you guys!" Antonio defended himself,

"I'm heading home. Otis, I'll be in bed so don't bother me." She stormed out of the bar.

"Wow, glad you guys are picking things back up with a great start!" Gabby said sarcastically and took Brett's seat. Antonio rolled his eyes.

"Hey, what was that gang Keon rolled with?" Gabby asked as Otis poured her a drink.

"I don't really feel like thinking, Gabby. I can't really remember. Why is Sylvie mad at me? I didn't do anything!" Antonio exclaimed furiously,

"Chill out, she'll get over it. She's really good friends with him so she's probably upset."

"What? They're good friends?" Antonio was surprised.

"Listen, I didn't come here to talk about this. Did you work everything out with Lee Henry?" She replied,

"Sis, you owe me one. He's off the hook for now, but this is his last chance. I dropped some serious charges off him that I can't let slide if he gets caught again." Her brother expressed sternly,

"Come on, Antonio. You've dealt with worse. All he could've been charged with was unlawful use of a firearm, right?" Gabby shrugged as if it was no big deal. Antonio laughed.

"If I didn't know he was Christopher Herrmann's son, that kid wouldn't be seeing daylight for a long time."

"What do you mean? He barely did anything." She defended,

"Gabby, I can go through all the charges if you want- attempted murder, possession of an illegal firearm, drug possession, and I would have figured out what else he has done with that damn gang of his. That could consist of drug trafficking, robbery, weapon trafficking-"

"Okay, okay, I get it. Did you say drug possession?"

"He had heroin, Xanax, and LSD on him when he was admitted into the hospital. Dr. Rhodes told me that he mostly had heroin in his body when they were looking at his test results."

Gabby's heart felt like it stopped. She didn't realize until now how much has changed since Christopher's death. How could a kid with such a bright future be sucked into gang life and drugs so easily? What happened to the Lee Henry who was being offered so many athletic scholarships to great colleges? She needed to talk to him as soon as possible.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Sorry about last night, Matt. I'm glad Cruz stayed with you." Gabby said as she did her makeup in the mirror. Her and Matt had been out of bed for about a half an hour as the clock read 8:48.

"Ah, don't worry about. He's a really fast dish cleaner," Matt smiled as he came next to Gabby in the mirror buttoning his shirt.

"I'm so excited for today. What color were you thinking?" He added excitedly,

"What's today?" Gabby stopped doing her makeup and looked at him confused,

"We're going to IKEA, remember? We've been planning to get a new desk for the computer for like a week now."

"Oh, damn. Can we maybe wait until later? I have to stop by Med." Gabby pleaded,

"Med? Why do you have to go there?" He asked annoyed,

"Um... Antonio is supposed to meet me there to discuss a patient of mine." Gabby lied nervously,

"That probably won't take too long. How about you meet me back at the house at 10? I have to head to the grocery story anyway?" He gained his enthusiasm back,

"Sounds good, babe." Gabby smiled and made sure to give him a long kiss before she grabbed her coat and left Matt at the house.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"We need to talk, now." Gabby stormed into Room 42.

"Oh, hey!" Lee Henry greeted cheerfully still in his hospital bed, but his smile faded as he saw her enraged face.

"What's going on?" He added nervously,

"You have to tell me what's going on, Lee Henry. I know about the drugs." She put her purse on the ground and pulled up a chair next to his bed. He had some deep scrapes on his face, a blue and blackened eye, and a bandage on the side of his head. He still looked so innocent.

Lee Henry groaned. "Did Antonio tell you? I told him not to say anything! Can't I sue him for that or something?"

"Of course, he's going to tell me, Lee Henry. Wait until your mom finds out! I should call her right now. Where is she anyway? I haven't even seen her."

"She was here last night after you left. Boden was here with her. Oh, and don't bother telling her... she already knows." He mumbled that last part.

Gabby was in shock. "What do you mean she knows? Does she know you're hanging with some gang?"

Lee Henry nodded.

So many thoughts were going through Dawson's head. How could he not be in rehab? How could Cindy allow him to hang out with gangsters?

"You have to tell me everything, Lee Henry. I'm so lost right now." She said concerned.

" _Fine_. I'll give you a summary of what life has been like since my dad died," He sighed heavily as Gabby was ready to listen.

"A few months after the funeral, we were already financially unstable and we had to move to the dump where we live now up in north Chicago,"

"Wait, how did you guys lose money so fast? The CFD raised a lot of money for the funeral expenses and there seemed to be a lot left over?" Gabby interrupted,

"My mom's friends started taking her out after my dad died to help her focus on better things. They then started taking her to bars almost four nights a week, and she started a serious drinking habit. My mom had rarely ever drunk before, but it seemed to be the only thing to ease her pain. She eventually just started buying alcohol and bringing it home," Lee Henry stopped for a moment to think about what he was going to tell next.

"A lot of our money went to feed her addiction, and she still hadn't gotten a job. I was working for my buddy's yard company after school, but I couldn't bring in enough money. That's why we moved. It's all her fault."

"Why didn't you guys call us? We could've helped you guys out!" Gabby exclaimed,

"Since Boden ditched us, we didn't want to call. You guys didn't call either, so we just moved on. Eleven months after dad died, I officially graduated and we were living in a two-bedroom house in a super bad neighborhood, but it was all we could afford. Right when we settled in, I had to be the one bringing in income,"

"So, you joined a gang? Where did the drugs come from?"

"It was the only option I had. I didn't want to, but I had no choice. I was just holding onto the drugs for a friend of mine. I will admit though that I used heroin the day you hit me. But I rarely ever do drugs." Lee Henry voice began to shake.

"We're going to fix this. I promise." Gabby had tears streaming down her cheeks as she put her arm around him and hugged him tightly.

"I'm so sorry," He began to cry, "I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

Before Gabby could answer, someone opened the door and Gabby turned around to find Matt.

"Gabby, are you okay?" He closed the door and made his way to her.

"Matt? What's going on? I was going to meet you at the house in like half an hour." She quickly wiped her tears away with her sleeve.

"You were just acting super weird this morning and I wanted to make sure you were-" Casey stopped mid-sentence when he made eye contact with Lee Henry.

"Lee Henry?" He was dumbfounded.

"Hey, Matt..."

Casey kept looking at him confused.

"Matt, I need to explain all of this to you." Gabby told him,

"What the hell is going on? It's really good to see you, Lee Henry, but I'm just super confused right now."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Wallace Boden knocked on the firm wooden door. He stood there in the light snowfall for a brief moment until the door opened.

"Hey, Max! How's it going?" Boden greeted enthusiastically as he looked down at the bright blonde boy, but Max just stared at him and slammed the front door.

Boden's smile disappeared and he was puzzled. "Max?" He put his head to the door and called for his name, "Anyone?"

The door opened once again, but this time it was Cindy.

"Wallace, I'm so sorry. Max gets nervous around strangers." Cindy welcomed Boden into the house.

"Stranger? It's me, Wallace. He knows who I am." Boden's feelings were hurt as he was being referred to as stranger.

"Well, a lot has changed since the last time he saw you. He just doesn't remember." Cindy said sternly as she looked at Boden in annoyance.

Boden took a quick look of the house. It was very clean all around, but it seemed so cramped for six people to share. There was a tiny hallway with three doors. Cindy shared her room with Annabelle and Kenny behind the door on the left while Lee Henry, Max, and Luke occupied the room on the right. Between them was one bathroom.

The living room had a small TV and a leather couch that could only fit around four people. Toys were scattered all around the hardwood floor of the living room but a bottle of vodka rested on the coffee table. The white walls had pictures of all the kids, but Boden noticed that all these pictures were from before Christopher died. A small table stood in the corner of the living room, and it was full of all things Christopher. Pictures, medals, his badge, newspaper articles... it was everything that represented him.

Cindy noticed that Boden eyed the vodka botte, and she quickly grabbed it and put it in the cabinet. Wallace gave her a serious glare.

"I only drink when the kids aren't home." She crossed her arms as she stood behind the kitchen countertop. Wallace took a seat on one of the stools.

"I talked to Gabby in the car before I got here. Lee Henry told her everything."

"Everything about what?" Cindy asked,

"You're an alcoholic Cindy! He said you wasted all of your money. How could you do something like that?" Boden was distraught, but he was caught off guard by Cindy's reaction. She simply just rolled her eyes.

"You seriously believe him?"

Boden was puzzled. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Because he's lying to you." She responded and Boden gave her a look wanting her to explain.

"After Christopher died, I will admit that I made some bad choices and I went out and drank... a lot. But I never ever drank around my children. We couldn't afford our house whether I drank or not, and that's why we moved. I did spend more money on alcohol than I should've and it's something that I regret very deeply. He hates me for it. When we moved, he reconnected with an old friend and it went all downhill for Lee Henry." Cindy explained.

"What do you mean?"

"Lee Henry was best friends with this boy named Micah in middle school until he moved to North Chicago and they lost contact. Now that we moved here also, Lee Henry got back into touch with him. Micah would take Lee Henry out every single night to party, and he introduced him to gang life and drugs until he finally overdosed."

"He overdosed?" Boden asked softly,

"Yes. Last year. He overdosed in the front yard. Max found him face down in the grass." Cindy's eyes filled with tears.

"Then what happened?"

"Nothing changed. In fact, things are still bad." She wiped her eyes,

"Lee Henry rarely comes home at night, and when he does, he fights with me. He works as a drug dealer with Micah and he comes and brings me the money he made. I worry about him every single night. But to sum it up, Lee Henry spent a lot of our money on drugs." She continued.

"How about the rest of your kids? Are they doing okay?"

"Honestly, Kenny might be the only sane one. Annabelle has been really slacking on her grades and I'm starting to get nervous for her. Max was already traumatized from Chris' death, and finding Lee Henry overdosing in the front yard made it ten times worse. He's just completely isolated himself and I could only get two words out of him a day. I know he needs a therapist, but I can't afford it. Oh, and don't get me started on Luke. That boy had the nerve to bring marijuana into this household the other night."

"Isn't he like ten?" Boden questioned,

"God, I wish. He's going to be fourteen next month. He's on the same path as his older brother."

"Damn, Cindy..."

"I know, I know. It's a mess!"

"A mess we're going to fix. I promise." Boden reassured her.


	4. A Lyon's Roar

_"Please, don't do this... I'm sorry!"_

 _The clouds in the midnight sky dropped buckets of water onto Chicago as the thunder roared and lightning lit up the city._

 _Lee Henry looked over the man he had thrown into the mud behind the isolated warehouse._

 _"Sorry doesn't cut it." He spit in his face._

 _"Do you really want to do this, Lee Henry?" Micah stood behind him as they both looked down at the bloodied man pleading for his life._

 _"Please! I promise I can make it up to you! I'll do whatever you want!" The man choked on his sobs as his tears blended with the rain dropping on his face._

 _An evil grin appeared on Lee Henry's face as he laughed to himself._

 _"Burn in hell." Lee Henry put a gun to the man's forehead._

 _"Wait! Please! WAI-"_

 _ **BANG!**_

"Lee Henry? Wake up!"

His eyes shot open. He looked around nervously but remembered he was still in the hospital

"Dr. Rhodes said you can come home today, isn't that great?" Cindy smiled caringly, but he didn't respond. He noticed Matt, Gabby, and Wallace standing in the room also. Gabby gave him a death-stare as she had her arms crossed looking at him.

Dr. Rhodes came into the room and informed them of the process of checking-out Lee Henry.

Gabby snuck over beside him.

"We need to talk when I'm done shift." She whispered to him and his heart sank in fear.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Brett sat at the common room table by herself eating fluffy bright scrambled eggs that Cruz had prepared. Keon had just finished getting his plate together. Almost every day they ate together when breakfast was made, but he simply made eye contact and brushed past her sitting on the couch next to Mouch.

She looked at her eggs sadly and lost her appetite.

Earlier that morning coming into shift, she had confronted her friend of what Antonio told her and his hidden relationship. Overall, it turned into a screaming fest that let everyone in 51 know Keon's business.

"Hey! How was your morning?" Cruz asked cheerfully as he plopped himself into the chair across from her. Her thoughts were broken and his enthusiasm startled her.

"Not so good..." She replied quietly,

"That's okay! At least the eggs are good! Right?" He laughed happily.

"Yeah... they're great..." Brett was weirded out.

"I'm going to make sure that the ambulance is stocked up for today." She added as Brett got up from her seat awkwardly.

"Okay! I'll wait here!" He watched her leave with a big smile on his face.

Keon rolled his eyes and sighed.

"So... gang life, huh?" Mouch said. Keon spit out his food and got up from the couch and left the common room. Once he was gone, Stella once again blurted out laughing.

"What is wrong with you?" She was standing beside the couch.

"I don't know... maybe he wanted to talk about his feelings?" Mouch replied shrugging his shoulders.

Otis laughed. "Dr. Mouch is in the house, everyone!"

"Well if everyone thought I was a murderer I'd want to talk to someone." Mouch replied defending himself as Otis laughed.

"Hey, Matt?" Stella approached Casey who was waiting in like to get breakfast.

"What's up?"

"Do you know where Dawson is? I had a quick question for her."

"Oh, yeah. She ran to the bathroom for a sec."

"Thanks." Kidd said and placed her food on the coffee table.

"Mouch, don't eat my breakfast."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Hey? Gabby?" Kidd entered the bathroom,

"Oh, hey, Kidd." Dawson was washing her hands.

"I had a really good idea if you're interested in hearing it?" Kidd was so excited.

"Sure." Gabby looked at herself in the mirror.

"Awesome! So, I was thinking we could get an ice machine at Molly's? It makes this special ice and we would be able to raise the prices on our drinks-"

"Whatever you think, Kidd." Gabby was clearly not paying any attention to her idea as she just stared at her reflection.

"Are you okay? You seem not yourself."

"I just have a lot of things going on, that's all." Gabby leaned her head over the sink as she rubbed her head.

"Do you wanna talk?"

"No, it's fine. You wouldn't understand." Gabby sighed.

"Try me."

Gabby looked at her doubtfully.

"Fine. Christopher Herrmann's kid is giving me hell."

"Christopher Herrmann?" Stella was a bit confused. She obviously never had the chance to meet him, since she arrived at 51 right after his death. She knew about his murder, but she didn't know any details.

"Yeah. His son, Lee Henry, is nineteen now and he's an addict. His family lives up in North Chicago and he's in the Simon City Royals. He just hasn't been honest with me and I don't know what to do."

"Damn... that's rough. You have to give him some tough love I guess?"

"I know I do, but I don't want to be a bitch towards him. I didn't make much of an effort to keep in contact with them these past couple years. No one really did."

"I can tell. You guys don't really talk about him. I didn't even know he had a family. Kelly gets super weird if I ask about him."

"He was _great_ firefighter." Gabby smiled.

"I wish I could have met him." Stella said,

"He would have really loved you." Tears filled Gabby's brown eyes. Stella couldn't find any words to make her feel better.

"But I think he would've really hated an ice machine in the bar." Gabby grinned and Stella laughed.

"Maybe I'll find something else to invest in."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Kelly was sitting at the squad table with Capp and Tony when Stella came walking over.

"Hey, won't don't you guys give us a minute?" Kelly ordered,

Tony and Capp looked at each other.

"God, he gets his fiftieth girlfriend and thinks he owns the squad table." Capp rolled his eyes as Severide chuckled.

Kidd sat down next to Kelly.

"Dawson didn't like the ice machine." Stella sighed.

"Aw no! I thought it was a good idea." Kelly reassured her,

"Well, she said ' _Christopher Herrmann'_ wouldn't have liked it."

Severide dropped his deck of cards he was playing with and his eyebrows furrowed.

"What does he have anything to do with it?" His tone of voice dramatically changed.

"I don't know." Her shoulders shrugged, "She said there's been some problems with his family right now."

"Stella, what are you talking about?"

"I was just talking to Gabby a few minutes ago. She said that Herrmann's son has a drug problem or something and she's been helping them out... are you okay?"

Kelly's face was bright red.

"Does Casey know that she's talking to them?"

"I don't know for sure, but they do _live together_. I'm sure he knows. What's going on? I didn't mean to make you mad or anything."

"I gotta talk to Casey. We'll talk about this tonight. I promise."

Kidd was so confused. "Alright... I talk to you later."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After two minor house fires, one car accident that ended up with numerous casualties, and a broken fire hydrant that flooded the street, the sun finally set on Chicago.

"I think it's fair to say we had quite a busy day."

Boden leaned back into his office chair waiting for Keon to say something. Keon's back seemed uncomfortable straight, and he wouldn't look his chief in the eyes.

"You did good today, Lyon. I'm really impressed."

Keon picked his head up and looked at his superior.

"Really?" Keon was caught off guard. He could have sworn this "meeting" was going to be about the recent allegations about his past.

"Of course. I'm really proud to say that I have Keon Lyon at my firehouse. That's why I need you to be 100% honest with me when I ask you these questions."

Keon's happiness evaporated into thin air. Disappointment clouded his head and his mouth became dry.

"Were you ever affiliated in a gang?"

Keon started sweating profusely. "Yes."

Boden was silent for a moment. He took out a paper from his right drawer.

"This is your application paper. Question eighteen clearly asks if you have ever been affiliated with a gang."

Keon was given his application. He could barely hold the paper because of his shaking hands.

"Give me **one reason to not fire you right now!** " Boden raised his voice furiously.

"You would have never hired me." Lyon spoke softly,

"Damn straight I would have never hired you!"

"No one would hire me. I was trying so hard to find a way out of the hood. I was a changed person. Everyone was judging me for my past, so I had to erase it the best I could." Keon's voice was shaking and tears rolled down his cheeks,

"Becoming a firefighter would prove I want to be a good person. I had to lie, you have to understand. If I didn't get this job, I would be dead right now." Keon was rocking back and forth and looked like he was a having a full anxiety attack and he began crying hysterically.

"Please... please don't fire me. I _need_ this job," He remorsefully begged.

Wallace wasn't exactly expecting this "meeting" to go the way it did. He had an extra water bottle and gave it to Lyon.

"Calm down. Drink some water. I know you care about your career, Keon, and I believe you're a changed person."

"I am, I promise!" The water didn't help and Keon was still sobbing.

"But I think you need time to figure yourself out. You clearly have some issues that you need to resolve before I can see you having a future at 51."

"No... please..." Lyon was shaking his head back and forth desperately pleading.

"I'm not firing you, Keon. You're a great firefighter. I'm putting you on leave until you're qualified mentally to come back. You need some time to yourself."

Lyon got up without saying a word and gently shut Boden's office door.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Almost everyone was hanging out in the common room.

"Hey, Casey? When you get a chance can we go out and smoke a cigar?" Severide whispered to him and Casey nodded in understanding.

Keon had a box and his duffel bag in his hands and shamefully walked through the common room with his head down.

Everyone looked at each other with confused looks.

"Lyon! Where are you going?" Casey got up from his chair and through his arms up in the air.

"I, uh... I'm on leave for a little while." Keon glanced into Brett's eyes.

"You all win."

He stormed out of the common room and headed for his car. The night sky was pitch black and he began filling his car with his personal belongings. Anger and pain filled his veins as he slammed the trunk. Standing next to him was a hooded figure that tapped on his shoulder.

"Goddamn it! You scared the hell out of me!" Lyon shouted,

"Sorry man... you work at 51?" It was so dark out that Keon couldn't even see the hooded figure's full face.

"Beat it, buddy. I don't have time for you."

"Wait!" The man grabbed Keon's shoulder before he got into the car.

"Back off!" Keon pushed him hard.

"Hey! I just needed to ask you a question." The figure pushed Keon back aggressively and they both were now in the middle of the street.

"Oh, hell no!" Keon laughed viciously as he sucker punched him.

Blood poured from his mouth as he fell to the ground.

The figure quickly got back to his feet and took out a gun and was pointing it straight at Lyon's head.

"Hey! What the hell is going on?" Severide, Casey, Dawson, Kidd, and Brett came running to the scene. They froze in their steps when they saw the gunman.

The gunman turned his head for a brief moment and made eye contact with Dawson.

"Lee Henry? Are you kidding me? Put the gun down!" Gabby was in shock.

Lee Henry looked at Keon furiously before putting his gun into the back of his pants.

"Leave, Keon. Leave right now!" Severide ordered furiously,

"What? No! I'm calling the police! This guy is psycho!"

"Go home. We have it taken care of." Matt added,

"Are you guys serious?" Lyon was baffled, but their stares answered his question. Keon huffed and slammed his car door speeding off into the night.

"Get in the firehouse. _Now_!" Dawson angrily ordered as he followed her and Brett to the back of the ambulance where Dawson was taking him.

"I can break your nose if I want to." Severide directed his anger to Casey. Matt backed up puzzled.

"Me? What the hell did I do?"

"Lee Henry starts coming around asking you guys for help and you don't even tell me?" Kelly was pacing back and forth with rage.

"I'm gonna go check on the kid..." Stella awkwardly backed away from the two and headed back to the firehouse.

"I was going to tell you. I swear. How do you even know about Lee Henry?"

"That's none of your damn business, Casey! I can't believe you and Gabby didn't tell anyone about this. Now look at him! He's pointing guns at whoever he wants."

"Kelly, I honestly don't have much to do with this. Boden and Gabby got involved with Lee Henry from that gang shooting call we responded to. She didn't even tell me at first." Casey tried to reason with his hot-headed friend,

"Chief knew? He didn't tell us either?" Kelly investigated sternly,

"Why are you so mad?" Casey laughed, "I didn't see you making an effort to keep a relationship with Herrmann's family either." Matt stated.

Severide stared at Matt silently. Casey couldn't read Kelly's face.

"That's not the point. I have a right to be angry." Severide snapped back,

"Then what is the point?!" Casey shouted and Kelly went silent.

"Oh, I get it, Kelly. You feel guilty. You're jealous because Gabby stepped in to help him and you had no part in it because you want to prove to Lee Henry that you still care. Am I right?"

"Go to hell." scoffed Severide and he spit on the ground. He returned to the firehouse leaving Casey alone in the street.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"That dude was crazy! He shoved me first."

"I don't care what happened, Lee Henry. You sound like a five-year old right now. You had no right to pull a gun on him." Gabby scolded as she aided to the cut on his mouth.

"Why do you even have a gun on you in the first place?" Brett interrogated,

"I got some angry fools who are looking to pop me right now. They think I'm a snitch because of your _damn brother_."

Anger fumed inside Gabby.

"If you need protection, then I suggest going to Antonio for help. It's not that complicated, Lee Henry."

"If it was that easy don't you think I would be out of gang life by now? Antonio has to stay away from me. Everyone on the streets knows who Hank Voight is, and if I'm caught talking to one of his boys in public then I'm as good as dead."

"But Antonio can get you out of this mess. He's done it before and plus he _knows_ you. He knows you're a good kid." Gabby emphasized,

"Trust me, I know he's done it before. Leon Cruz had to leave Chicago."

Deep down, Gabby could see the point Lee Henry was making. Working with Antonio was risky, but she thought it was better than the current situation.

"Well, let me get to the point of why I was even here in the first place. I wanted to talk to you about-" Lee Henry was cut off when Severide appeared outside the ambulance. Behind him, Casey was fuming as he rushed back into the common room.

"Hey... Kelly..." Lee Henry awkwardly greeted him.

"Hi." Severide was also uncomfortable and waved his hand lowly.

Silence lingered the air for a brief moment.

"How about we take a walk?" Gabby suggested. Her and Lee Henry hopped out of the ambo and began walking to the driveway of 51.

"I'm really sorry about causing a scene like that. It won't happen again." Lee Henry sincerely apologized,

"It's fine. That's just who you are now." Gabby glumly frowned. Lee Henry halted in his tracks.

"Hey! Don't you see that I'm trying?" He defended himself.

"You could've been so much more by now. Your father would be so disappointed in you." Her voice was soft, but her words were full of pain.

"News flash, Gabby! I don't give a shit what he would think. I'm here providing for his alcoholic mess of a wife and his other four accidental children. He left me this mess." Lee Henry raged,

"You're acting like you're such a saint! Take a look in the mirror. Look at the role model you've become for your ' _accidental siblings'_ who love you dearly. They have already lost their father. Imagine the pain they'll go through when the police find you dead in some alley!" exasperated Gabby as she noticed the painful expression painted on his face,

"I can't do this with you anymore, Lee Henry." Tears dropped down her cheek,

"You can either let me help you, or we can all watch you throw your life away. It's your choice." She looked at him desperately as he stared at the ground with his head down avoiding eye contact with her. Gabby scoffed.

"I have to go. Call me when you're ready." Dawson turned away slowly praying he would stop her.

Silence.

Halfway up the firehouse driveway, she turned back to see him one more time.

He was gone.


	5. How the Addiction Began

_October, 2015_

"Herrmann, what the hell are all these flyers doing in my firehouse?" Boden walked into the common room with blue papers in his hands.

"Oh! Sorry, Chief. Lee Henry's hockey team is heading to the championship this weekend and I was reminding everyone to come." He answered innocently,

"You couldn't just send out a text?" Otis added,

"It would've gotten lost in that damn group chat. You guys text too much." Herrmann defended.

"No more flyers. You're junking up the firehouse." Boden put the flyers on the kitchen counter and went back to his office.

Herrmann rolled his eyes.

"Why do you need to us to come so bad? It's not like you're the coach." Cruz spoke,

"Lee Henry is captain this year and I want to make sure he's got a full audience of supporters. This is a big deal for him!" Christopher threw his hands up in the air,

"Wouldn't us being there just make him more nervous?" Dawson intervened,

"What? No! Lee Henry doesn't get nervous for anything! He'll really appreciate it if you guys come."

"Fine, we'll all be there. Clear your calendars. That's an order." Casey sighed and told the firehouse.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

He was shaking.

Lee Henry was standing in the hockey arena tunnel as he felt the frozen air from the ice leak through his mask sending chills down his spine.

Almost everyone he knew was there. His friends, his family, and the whole freaking fire department decided to show up.

This was it. This was what he worked his whole life for. He had been playing for this club team ever since he was three years old. Never had they made the State Championship, but when Lee Henry became captain, they finished with the best record in the history of the organization.

His team, the Timberwolves, were expecting a trophy. His friends were expecting to see a trophy. His family was expecting a trophy to bring home. His father _needed_ a trophy. Lee Henry wanted nothing more than to make his father proud, after years and years of his dad training him to be the best player possible. His father deserved it more that anyone.

The pressure was on.

"Alright, we're out in one minute! Get ready guys!" His coach shouted as the music from the arena began blasting.

The bass from the music ran through Lee Henry, and adrenaline rushed through his veins. His heart was beating so fast that he thought it was going to explode.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we now welcome the West Chicago Timberwolves onto the ice!" The announcer yelled through the arena.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It wasn't a huge arena, and many seats were open, but sitting in the lowest section closest to the ice was almost everyone Lee Henry knew.

The Timberwolves skated onto the stage with Lee Henry first out of the tunnel.

The Herrmann family stood up cheering as loud as they could. They were all wearing Lee Henry's blue, black, and grey jersey that had the number four on it.

Casey and Dawson looked at each other and chuckled.

"I feel like I'm at a Blackhawks game." Dawson pointed out and Casey laughed.

"I've never seen Herrmann so excited for something." Casey added,

"Oh, just you wait. He's gonna get super crazy." Cruz warned them and Otis nodded in agreement.

Dawson, Casey, and Severide hadn't been to one of Lee Henry's games in years. Brett wasn't really interested in hockey, but came to show her support.

Otis, Cruz, Mouch, and Boden on the other hand had seen dozens of his games and witnessed how competitive Christopher got.

When the other team was called out, Herrmann began booing and was receiving dirty looks from numerous parents.

"Christopher, stop!" Cindy's face turned red in embarrassment,

"Cindy, they were booing at us. Come on kids, boo at them!"

Cindy put her head down as Dawson was laughing hysterically in her seat.

"Does he always do this?" She asked Cruz and he nodded.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It was the fourth quarter. The score was 2-1. Timberwolves were losing.

Lee Henry had scored the first goal in the second quarter and everyone went crazy. The opposing team, the Wolverines, were expected to win, and had a better finishing record. They were more aggressive than ever before.

There were three minutes and eighteen seconds left.

The Timberwolves were becoming tired, and were having trouble keeping up the pace. Four fights had broken out through the game, and the players who fought wasted lots of their energy.

Down on the other end of the ice, Wolverine captain Dylan Walker took a shot that bounced off of the goal post. The puck went right to Lee Henry.

On the fast break, Lee Henry was speeding down the ice as fast as humanly possible. This was his chance to save the game.

He could hear everyone he knew screaming for him at the top of their lungs, and he heard a distinct voice that belonged to his father the most.

Lee Henry went behind the goalie and quickly skated around to take his shot aiming for the bottom left corner. Everything went silent. It was just him, and the goalie. Lee Henry was focused so hard that everything felt like slow motion. His stick went back, and with all his strength, he slapped the puck with his stick.

Milliseconds after the puck left his stick, Dylan Walker body slammed Lee Henry into the arena board head first.

When Lee Henry came into contact with the wall, he didn't even notice the paralyzing pain that went down his back. He was laying on the ice, waiting for the siren to go off that would let everyone know he tied up the game.

It never went off.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Christopher Herrmann watched his son run down on the fast break. Everyone was screaming and they knew he was going to score. He could see it in his son's eyes.

That's when Dylan Walker pushed his son into the board.

Herrmann's heart stopped when he saw Lee Henry's neck bend as he went head first and wasn't getting up. The game was still in play. The referees had barely even noticed and waited for him to get up.

Herrmann has his hands on his head.

"He's not getting up..." Christopher said nervously. That's when the Timberwolves coach called an injury timeout. The medical staff aided to his side immediately.

"Come on... get up." Herrmann continued rambling and the arena was no longer cheering. They were silent.

He heard the arena medical staff saying that he needed to be transported to the hospital immediately, and that's when Herrmann jumped out of his seat and ran onto the ice.

"What's wrong with him?" Christopher yelled as he kneeled to his son's side,

"We're not totally sure, but-" The young "nurse" spoke nervously,

"You don't know! Who the hell hired you? He's not moving!" Herrmann shouted angrily at the younger girl,

"Gabby! Brett! Come down here!"

Gabby and Brett rushed down but were having a bit of trouble walking on the ice. When they finally reached Lee Henry's motionless body, they began to act like it was a call during shift.

"You're gonna be fine, I promise." Christopher swore to his unconscious son anxiously.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"I can't believe what just happened." Gabby said softly in the passenger seat of Matt's truck. Casey, Gabby, Severide, and Brett were all in the car driving to the hospital.

"He's going to be fine. They were lucky you and Brett were there to check him out.

"Lee Henry is not going to be _fine_ , Casey. His back is broken." Severide angrily stated. Casey knew he was right and the four of them drove in a tense silence.

At the hospital, the four found everyone else already in the waiting room.

"Sorry, there was so much traffic. What's the word?" Casey asked,

"Neck sprain, and two broken vertebrae." Cruz answered sluggishly,

"Goddamn it..." Severide sighed somberly as the four took a seat.

"Where's Herrmann?" Gabby investigated,

"He's on the phone with Cindy outside. She had to drop the kids off at her sister's. She'll be back soon." Mouch responded,

"I'm going to go talk to him for a minute." Gabby lifted herself from the seat,

"Dawson, why don't you give him a minute. He's really upset right now." Boden insisted,

Gabby ignored him which made Wallace annoyed as he sat with his arms crossed in the chair.

When she exited the hospital, she approached Herrmann who was ending his phone call with Cindy.

"Alright, let me talk to you later. I'll keep you updated... Okay... Yes... Love you too..."

"I really don't feel like chatting right now, Gabby," Herrmann spoke gloomily,

"Just talk to me, please?"

"There's nothing to talk about. My son might be paralyzed."

"I know, I'm so sorry." Gabby said remorsefully,

Herrmann's phone buzzed. He read the text message he had just received and he frowned.

"What's wrong?" Gabby asked concerned,

"The final score was 2-1. We lost."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"You're incredibly lucky, Lee Henry." Dr. Manning told him, "With physical therapy you _might_ be able be to get on the ice again. We're going to keep you in the hospital for a little while and we're prescribing you Vicodin for the pain."

Vicodin.

Vicodin would become his best friend. His enemy. His Savior. His murderer.

 **Author's Note:** Short chapter! I just wanted to thank you all for the very nice reviews! It means a lot!

 **Make sure to follow, favorite, and review!**


	6. Cold Case

**.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

Antonio began pinning pictures and evidence onto the white board. A picture of Freddie Clemente now stared into the bullpen.

"Dawson, we're in the middle of working on a case. What the hell is this?" Jay interrogated from his chair tapping his pen on the wooden desk out of curiosity.

"I got the case moved to another station. We need to revisit this case." Antonio explained as Jay rolled his eyes.

"Since when do you get to call the shots?" Voight appeared outside his office and had annoyance tinted in his voice,

"We owe it to Herrmann," Antonio sighed, "Freddie Clemente can't outsmart us."

"It's been _way_ too long, Antonio. We can't just randomly continue a cold case like this." Erin tried reasoning with him,

"Yeah, I have to agree with Lindsay. Look, I know you were good friends with Chris. This case was too personal for you when it started, and it's still too personal for you." Adam added. Antonio stared at them in disgust.

"Are you guys joking right now?" Dawson growled, "We knew him. He was our friend. Don't you _dare_ tell me that this case is too personal for me. It should be personal for all of you!"

Everyone was silent and let him continue speaking.

"I can't go another day with this case being unsolved. It needs to be put to rest so everyone can just move on." Antonio took a deep breath after his rant.

"He's not wrong," Voight added, "But we have to do this on the down low. We're not supposed to just throw out cases to other departments. We're going to open the case, but we have to do it on our own. Understand?"

Antonio nodded with a small grin.

"Alright. Let's get to work." Voight ordered to his team sternly.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

Lee Henry patiently waited on the street corner for his "client". It was foggy out with a light misty drizzle. His hood was up avoiding eye contact with anyone walking by.

His client, Don Gibbons, was a loyal one. Once a week, he met Lee Henry in a quick handoff of black tar heroin. Lee Henry didn't know much about his clients, but Don was different. He was in his late fifties, and always showed up wearing an expensive suit. Don also showed off a golden wedding ring on his left hand. Lee Henry was also shocked on how this guy didn't look like utter shit from using all this heroin.

Black tar heroin was immensely different from your standard pure heroin. It was far from pure, as it is laced with chemicals and toxic contaminants. It possessed a dark color, and smelt like vinegar. It caused skin to fade away, constant itching, nausea, brain damage, collapsed veins, and dozens of other risks. Don Gibbons always came to the corner like he had never even had black tar heroin, and seemed like he was in perfect health.

In less than a minute, the exchange went through and Don hopped back into his car.

Lee Henry counted his money for the eighth time to make sure Don didn't scam him, but he knew Gibbons would never do that unlike some of his clients.

Minutes later, a black and grey Porsche Cayenne pulled up in front of Lee Henry.

"Yo! Get in. We're paying a visit to an old friend of mine." The familiar voice belonged to Nick Esposito who sat behind the wheel. Next to him was Hunter Ross, and in the backseat was Micah.

"Guys, I'm working right now." Lee Henry claimed as Nick rolled his eyes.

"If you don't get yo' white ass in this car I'll pop you like the fool we're visiting right now." Nick spat as Lee Henry hopped in the car. Nick and Lee Henry were pretty good friends. Esposito had been in the gang since he was seventeen years old, and he had just recently turned twenty-six. When Lee Henry was initiated into the gang, Esposito had acted as his mentor.

On the other hand, Lee Henry didn't know Hunter too well. He had tattoos covering his whole body, face, and neck. Ross was twenty-four, and had joined when he was sixteen. He was normally quiet and had a very down-to-earth personality.

"So... who is this "friend" we're meeting up with?" Micah investigated,

"None of your business. You three are just going to keep yo'selves in this car and ain't gonna leave it unless I say so," Esposito ordered as he sped through a red light.

Micah looked at Lee Henry nervously.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"This is ridiculous." Jay Halstead groaned as he put his keys in the ignition of the police car with Lindsay in the passenger seat.

"It's fine," Erin tried convincing him, "Maybe he'll show up somewhere." She added positively,

" _Show up somewhere_? Freddie is probably in some other country right now. We're wasting our time." He snapped back annoyed,

"I get what you're saying but Antonio really wants us to come up with some sort of lead. He's not going to be happy when we tell him his aunt doesn't know anything." Lindsay explained as Jay began to drive away from Freddie's aunt's house.

She simply told Jay and Erin that she hadn't seen Freddie since the murder took place. She explained that Freddie most likely got himself out of Chicago with the help of some of his old friends.

"We're going to have to go interview Freddie's friends after we stop by the station." Jay grunted,

"Well, she only remembered one name," Erin reminded him, "Austin Sawyer."

"I'll call Voight and let him know we're heading back. I'll let him know to start a background check on Sawyer." Jay began to dial Voight's number.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

Gabby was checking her phone constantly for any sign of Lee Henry. She wanted to see if he would reach out first. Dawson felt guilty about their argument that took place a few nights ago in front of the firehouse and she has not heard from him since. 51 wanted to know what's been going on, but she simply explained that he needed some alone time before he came back to visit. Gabby was a good liar. Telling them about the fight would most likely result in her coworkers being angry with her.

"Hey, is anyone planning on cooking tonight?" Mouch wondered as he read the newspaper on his couch,

"I don't know. No one bought groceries." Otis replied,

"Well go get Cruz. Maybe squad can go out and grab something." Mouch was starving.

Otis groaned having to get up.

"Gabby?" Matt was sitting across from her at the long common room table. She was on her phone barely paying attention to anyone.

"Gabby?" Matt asked again sternly since there was no answer the first time. She perked her head up.

"I was thinking you and I could maybe get breakfast tomorrow?" He requested sweetly,

"That's really sweet but I'm meeting with my brother right after shift tomorrow morning." Gabby replied with barely any emotion and went back to staring at her phone screen.

Matt was clearly annoyed that they had not been spending much time together recently. When they were together at home, Gabby was simply feeling guilty and was constantly asking Matt for reassurance. He was the only one who knew about the fight.

"Yes, Mouch?" Cruz appeared into the common room,

"Can squad maybe go out and get something for us to eat?" Mouch begged politley,

"Why can't truck just go out?" Cruz snapped back,

"Uh... we're kinda busy right now." Kidd chimed in. Cruz looked and saw that Gabby was on her phone, Kidd began playing tabletop football with Otis on the circular table behind the couch, and lastly Casey and Brett we're having a conversation about the mid-series finale of Game of Thrones.

"Yep. You guys look really busy." Cruz said irritated,

"Please, Cruz. If we go out on call and start passing out because we're starving than that's on you." Mouch exclaimed.

Cruz rolled his eyes and groaned. "Fine." And went back to the squad table.

"Thank you!" Mouch shouted.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"It's getting dark out. He's been in there for like an hour. Should we go in?" Micah spoke nervously,

"He said don't get out of the car. And it's been fifteen minutes, bro." Lee Henry answered with his eyes closed trying to nap, but Micah continued to stare out of the window in worry.

"Dude, stop acting like a dog. He's a grown ass man." Hunter pointed out,

"Yeah you're right." Micah leaned back and tried to relax himself.

A couple minutes later, a gunshot went off from the small rundown house they were parked in front of.

"Shit! Let's go help him!" Micah opened the car door but Lee Henry grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back in.

"Just keep you head down! We can't go in there." Lee Henry ordered angrily.

Seconds went by and Nick casually walked back to the car and tucked his gun back into his pants. Micah's heart rested with relief. Esposito got back in the car.

"Be careful who you borrow money from." Esposito warned as Hunter chuckled with amusement.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"Yeah... Four sesame chicken...uh... Nine egg rolls... Three wonton soup containers... Yes, the large ones..."

Kelly gave a dumfounded look to Cruz.

"What's up, Lieutenant?" Joe asked curiously,

"Do we seriously need all of that food? We're ordering like half of China." Kelly pointed to Capp who was on the phone ordering for 51.

Cruz laughed.

"Sanders from second shift texted Capp to save leftovers, so we ordered a little extra." Tony explained,

"Well why didn't he order it before we left? We're already halfway there!" Severide exclaimed,

"I'll drive slow." Tony reassured him.

"Okay... Twenty minutes?!... no...no that's fine. See you soon." Capp hung up the phone.

"Twenty minutes?!" Cruz shouted,

"What the hell do we do for twenty minutes?" Severide groaned, but that twenty minutes would soon turn into hours.

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"Austin Sawyer? Open up! It's Chicago PD. We just need to ask you-" Ruzek was suddenly cut off when the door of the tiny house flew open.

"What do you want?" Sawyer demanded, but Ruzek and Antonio were caught off guard by how this young kid looked so old.

Sawyer was twenty-eight years old, but looked like he was deep into his forties. He had dyed blue hair that was very much faded and stuck to his forehead from the grease of not washing it regularly. His pale skin highlighted his yellow teeth, and his skin looked very red and irritated.

"Mind if we come in?" Antonio asked politely and Sawyer let them in with no problem.

"Please, sit." They knew he was trying to be nice, but his tone of voice resembled a grumpy old man.

Antonio and Adam sat on the beige couch that contained dozens of rips and holes. The walls were a faded white with no décor. The "living room" and kitchen were both connected with no wall separating the two. The living space was so small that Adam could see burnt spoons on the kitchen counter from where he was sitting. On the coffee table, shards of glass were scattered about.

"Here is something to drink." Austin handed them both chipped glasses that contained cloudy water.

"Thank you." They both said in unison.

"We just wanted to stop by and ask you a few questions about an old friend." Antonio began,

"Hm, I have lots of friends." Austin claimed as he pulled up a white plastic patio chair to sit in.

Antonio looked to Adam thinking he would begin talking about Freddie, but no. Dawson could easily see Ruzek starting to profile Austin.

"Uh, right," Antonio continued, "Do you have one in particular named Freddie Clemente?"

Austin began speaking, but Adam completely tuned him out. Adam focused on his extremely thin figure, chipped front teeth, and the fidgeting of his sweaty fingers.

Adam interrupted Austin.

"Austin, mind showing us the backyard?" Ruzek caught Austin off guard.

"Ruzek, he was just about to get into the night of Herrmann's murder. Let him tell us." Antonio was extremely ticked off.

"Nah, I think we need to see the backyard." Ruzek stood up and made his way to the back of the small house. Austin's veins filled with fear.

"Ruzek! What the hell?" Antonio followed him to the backyard. Sawyer stood in the doorframe of the backdoor.

"This guy is an idiot! He didn't even try cleaning up the evidence!" Ruzek announced loudly and rushed to the grey and white damaged shed that rested in the grass.

"AHA!" Adam shouted when he slid open the doors to find a meth lab. "Austin Sawyer, you're under arrest for-" Ruzek stopped talking when he turned around to see that Austin was gone.

"Damn! We have to find him. Call for backup!" Antonio declared as the two pulled out their guns and ran to the front of the house. They saw Austin sprinting and he made a sudden left into his neighbor's driveway. Ruzek was running fast than Dawson, and he made his way onto the neighbor's property before Dawson. Adam immediately heard footsteps coming from the neighbor's backyard.

"What's going on?" An older lady stepped out of her front door.

"Go back inside! Now!" Antonio ordered once he caught back up with Adam. The startled elderly woman rushed back inside.

Ruzek and Antonio continued to chase Austin. They could hear police sirens in the distance. Finally, Austin made a sharp right in between two houses that were very close to each other.

When Adam turned the corner seconds later, Sawyer was gone. With stealth, Adam's pace became slower as he clenched his hands around the gun. His breathing was heavy, and sweat covered his face. Antonio appeared behind him and Ruzek felt a little less anxious now that he wasn't alone walking down the gravel alleyway.

"I see him!" Antonio called out when he saw the slightest movement behind a trashcan. They dashed towards Sawyer, but he stood up out of hiding with a pistol pointed.

The two didn't even have enough time to react to the gunshot. As fast as they could, they took cover on the ground.

But it was too late.

One of them was already shot.

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

Squad 3 had just been driving around wasting time. They had around ten minutes to kill.

"Tony, where the hell are you going?" Severide questioned,

"I don't know. I'm just going wherever. We're two minutes away from the restaurant.

The streets were mostly dark, but the sun still had a little more setting to do. Tony took a sharp left that led to a few different apartments and warehouses. They drove until they reached train tracks.

"Alright, I'm gonna turn around and head to the place." Tony announced but before he could turn the large truck around, Severide interrupted.

"What's down here?" Curiosity bubbled inside Kelly.

"Some abandon trains and stuff?" Cruz answered taking a better look through the window.

"Ew! Look at these kids!" Capp pointed out a few teens spraying graffiti on an old train storage container.

"What are they... Oh, how mature!" Cruz exclaimed and Kelly was dying of laughter.

"What is it? I can't see." Tony tried turning his head around,

"It's the biggest graffiti penis I have ever seen." Severide continued to laugh as Cruz looked at him in disgust.

"Seriously? You're laughing at this? This is what this city has come to!" Joe nagged,

"Chill, grandma. They're like ten it's fine." Severide defended,

"Exactly! They're like ten! What's going to happen when they turn fifteen?" Cruz sounded genuinely concerned.

"Well, what do you want to do about it?" Capp asked,

"I'm gonna go tell these asshole kids to screw off." Cruz decided confidently,

"Dude, you are such an old lady!" Severide proclaimed but Joe was already out of the truck.

There were about six kids. All of their hoods were up, and they looked like silhouettes in the fog. Cans of beer were thrown all over the tracks.

"Hey!" Cruz yelled and the kids immediately stopped their laughing and froze like deer.

"Yeah, that's right! Didn't think you would get caught, did you?" Cruz sneered as Tony, Capp, and Kelly continued laughing from the truck. Kelly decided to join Cruz. When Severide approached him, he was already on the phone with Chicago PD.

Severide's tone quickly changed. "Cruz, stop. They're just kids." He stated seriously,

"We're thirteen!" The one kid corrected and Severide rolled his eyes. Cruz told CPD what was going on, and they were sending officers over to investigate.

"Alright, officers are coming over to interview you all. Take your hoods off." Cruz demanded since he couldn't see their faces due to the darkness of the sky. The kids groaned.

"You're wasting our time." Severide mumbled to Cruz, but Joe simply wouldn't let them go.

"Hey, I said take off your hood." Cruz noticed one kid still kept it on, hiding his identity.

"It's a free country. Luke can keep his hoodie on if he wants." Another kid pronounced confidently. Severide locked eyes with the hooded kid, and immediately recognized him.

"Luke?" Severide's mouth dropped. Luke backed up a few steps, and began sprinting.

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"I am so pissed! I give them one job!" Mouch threw his arms up in the air,

"I didn't know you became Kelly's boss." Otis chuckled,

"They can't even pick up Chinese food! It's been almost two hours." Mouch added angrily as he looked at the clock that read 8:14PM,

"They'll be here soon. Just chillax." Kidd suggested. Everyone in the common hadn't even moved since Squad 3 left.

"Are any of you cooking or something?" Boden peered around the corner looking into the common room.

Casey was growing more annoyed by the minute. "If you guys want food, simply _make it yourself_." He snapped angrily throwing his book onto the table and retrieving to his office. Boden followed him.

Gabby looked up from her phone to see him storm away.

"Is he okay?" Brett asked concerned. Gabby returned to paying attention to her phone.

"Yeah, he's fine. He's on his period or something." Gabby replied causing Brett to laugh.

In Matt's office, he was already sitting in his desk starting paperwork. Chief Boden knocked on his door.

"What's going on?" Wallace inquired sitting at the end of his bed.

"Nothing. The laziness just ticks me off." Matt lied,

"Seriously, Casey. Talk to me."

Matt sighed. "It's Gabby. She's consuming every free second with her phone to see if she can find anything about Lee Henry. I wish she would just take a break and let Lee Henry handle his own problems."

"Well, she cares. That's just her personality." Boden mentioned,

"I understand, and that's one of her traits that I absolutely adore," Matt defended, "But now we're not spending time with each other. We're drifting."

Before Matt could continue, they were interrupted by yelling coming from the common room. Chief gave Casey a concerned look and they went to check it out.

"You can't keep me here!" Luke yelled,

"Listen you little punk," Severide bent down to reach his height, "You'll be in this firehouse for as long as we say so." He scolded,

"Kelly! What the hell is going on?" Boden shouted,

"Is this was took you guys this long?" Mouch chimed in,

"We found little Luke over here acting like tough guy. He made Severide chase up and down the train tracks until he tackled him after we found him damaging property," Cruz informed and they all possessed stunned faces as Luke rolled his eyes.

"Oh, and that's not all. He spit on me twice on the way here, cursed us out, and he's been drinking. beer" Severide added angrily,

Boden rubbed his forehead. "I don't even know what's going on anymore." He mumbled to himself,

"Severide, just have him sit at the squad table until his mom comes to pick him up." Boden declared and took a deep breath trying to calm his stress down.

"Hey, Tony?" Mouch whispered getting his attention, "Did you get the Chinese food?"

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

Ruzek was resting in a hospital bed and had a sling on his arm with a patch on his shoulder.

"Alright, Adam. Bullet went right through. You had minimum bleeding, and the bullet didn't hit any bone. You're quite lucky." Will Halstead read from the tablet informing his brother's coworker,

"Thanks so much, Halstead #2." Adam thanked and Will left the room saying goodbye to Jay.

"I can't believe you got shot." Kim said again to herself,

"Kim, I'm okay. I swear." Adam sincerely told her. Kim, Jay, Kevin, and Erin were all visiting him after the incident with Austin.

"What's up with Antonio?" Ruzek investigated,

"Oh, him and Voight are coming in now." Erin replied as Antonio and Voight entered the room.

"Anyone care to explain what really happened?" Voight inquired angrily,

"Sawyer was about to tell us about what happened to Freddie the night of the murder but Ruzek just _couldn't wait_ to bust his meth lab." Antonio explained spitefully,

"Are you saying this is my fault?" Ruzek yelled pointing to himself,

"Yes! If you had just waited, Sawyer would've have told us what happened! Now he's refusing to speak. You just _had_ to investigate." Antonio shouted back,

"That's our job, Antonio! We're supposed to investigate!" Adam was quaking with fury.

"You're not understanding what I'm saying, Adam! The point is that you ruined everything!" Dawson scolded,

"You know what, Antonio?" Adam snapped while in the hospital bed. "The only reason why you opened up this case was so you could feel better about yourself! We all cared about Chris, but it was ridiculous for you to think we could find Freddie after almost two years after the murder. We were all working so hard on our last case, and you selfishly threw it away to another team. You should be ashamed of yourself."

"That's why we're putting the case away for good." Voight intervened putting a stop to the bickering.

"What?" Antonio uttered under his breath,

"Antonio, it just wasn't working out," Erin attempted to reason with him, "There's no way we're ever going to find Freddie."

Antonio looked at the team in disgust.

"I can't believe this..." Dawson boiled with anger,

"Why don't we get some air?" Jay suggested guiding Antonio out of the hospital room heading to the parking lot.

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"Luke, where is your mother? She's not answering her phone?" Boden interrogated the thirteen-year old as he approached the squad table. He simply just shrugged his shoulders. Boden sighed disappointedly.

"It's getting late, Luke. Would your brother be able to pick you up?" Kelly questioned,

"I haven't seen Lee Henry in days. Besides, he doesn't have a car." Luke answered. Boden rubbed the temple of his forehead in stress.

"Listen, just let me leave. My mom wasn't expecting me to come home tonight anyway. I was supposed to stay at my friend Bryce's house. But now he's grounded because Cruz just _had_ to call the police." Luke tried to compromise as he leaned back in his seat with his arms crossed giving a dirty look to Joe who was sitting across from him.

"We can't just let you leave, Luke. You're thirteen, not twenty." Joe snapped back,

"I'll be fourteen in a couple of weeks just so you know," Luke corrected him proudly,

"How about I take him back to my place tonight?" Kelly suggested as Luke's face grew with anger.

Boden took a long unsure look at Luke.

"Are you sure?" Boden questioned,

"Yeah, I'll call Cindy in the morning to pick him up."

"Do I get a say in this?" Luke grumbled annoyed,

"No." Both Kelly and Wallace told Luke in unison,

A few seconds later, Ambulance 61, Squad 3, and Truck 81 were being called to a house fire in North Chicago.

Everyone came dashing out of the common room and hurried to the trucks.

"Luke, you need to sit outside my office until we come back." Boden demanded as he opened his car door. Luke groaned as he got up from his seat.

 **.**

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"Nick, what did you do?!" Angelo Keyes, AKA "Busta" shoved him against the wall furiously,

"I didn't burn the place down! I swear!" Esposito shoved him back,

"Busta, he really didn't. We were there." Lee Henry defended his friend,

"Stay out of this!" Busta snarled back. The gang member's superiority was already enough to shut Lee Henry up. Busta had been active in the gang since he was eleven years old, and was high in ranks of the Simon City Royals. He was fully covered in tattoos from head to toe, but one in particular was inked onto his neck. It read " _9 Lives_ " in green cursive with a skull. Busta was proud of the tattoo, due to all of his near-death experiences and enemies he has made over the years. The first time Busta was shot was when he was thirteen. He was 6'6, and his muscles were so big that he looked like the hulk. Busta had long dreads that reached his shoulder's, and the teardrop tattoo below his right eye always sent fear into Lee Henry's veins.

"Guess what, Esposito? Juan Flores was Kirk Leon's right-hand man. You might have just started a war!" Busta shouted spitting in his face.

Micah and Lee Henry had no idea what was going on, and they were pissed that Nick had gotten them into this mess. Lee Henry had no idea who Juan Flores was, but he knew Kirk Leon who was a high-ranking member of the Gangster Disciples. The Gangster Disciples was no gang to be messed with.

Before Busta could say another word, a blocked phone number appeared on his phone. They were currently in Nick's living room, but Busta went into the bathroom to answer the call.

"Dude, he's gonna beat yo' ass." Micah laughed at him,

"It's not funny, Micah! This is not a joke." He snapped wiping the smirk off of Micah's face.

"What the hell is this about? What did you get us involved in, Nick?" Lee Henry pointed his finger in Nick's face demanding answers.

"Juan, the fool I popped, borrowed some money from me on the down low since we got some beef with the Ganger Disciples. He didn't pay me back, so I put a bullet in his head. I guess he had the stove on or something because now his place is currently burning down."

"Did you know he was Kirk's right-hand man?" Micah added,

"Yeah, I did. I've known Juan forever. We went to high school together. The dude is an ass to everyone. I honestly didn't think anyone would even care that he got popped. I thought I was doing a few fools a favor by getting rid of him." Esposito explained honestly, but before Lee Henry could say anything, Busta came out of the bathroom. They could hear two Jeeps pull up into driveway.

"Espo, we have to talk to Kirk. He's outside now. He's willing to compromise with us." Busta informed Nick as they headed out the front door and into the driveway. Before shutting the door, Busta winked at Micah and Lee Henry.

From the window next to the front door, Micah and Lee Henry watched the scene unfold. Kirk Leon was talking to Nick casually and calmly when all of the sudden he pulled a pistol out from under his shirt. Kirk shot Nick dead right in the face.

Kirk shook Busta's hand and they were in their Jeeps in a matter of seconds. Busta went back inside.

Lee Henry and Micah felt traumatized as they stared at their dead friend in horror through the window.

"Boys, that is how you compromise." Busta cheerfully exclaimed, but they couldn't take their eyes off the corpse.

"Listen, I need you kids to disappear for a little bit." Busta's happy tone turned serious. Micah and Lee Henry slowly turned around with confused looks on their faces.

"Since you guys were with Nick, Juan's buddies might come after you. Kirk honestly didn't give a shit about you two. Kirk is a simply man- he just wants to shoot the shooter. Hower, Kirk can't control his guys. Juan's friends have a bit of a temper. I'm not asking you to go completely off the grid, but just stay low. Got it?"

Micah and Lee Henry were frozen like a deer in headlights.

" _Got it_?" Busta asked once more angrily and the two nodded.

"Good. Now fuck off."

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

For the past half an hour, Antonio had been rambling on and on about the past few days. Truthfully, Jay had tuned him out after the first five minutes of his vent.

Thankfully, Halstead received a text message from Voight-

 **Voight** : " _Let's go. We have a case. Tell Antonio to go home_."

"Hey, Dawson?"

Antonio stopped mid-sentence.

"We actually have a case... So, I'm going to have to head out..." Jay pointed behind him nervously,

"Oh, nice. Well let's go." Antonio exclaimed brushing past him,

"Actually, Voight wants you to go home. You know, to clear your head and stuff." Jay gritted his teeth anxiously feeling somewhat guilty.

Antonio sighed. "Alright then. Let me know if you guys need anything." Dawson voiced disappointedly. Jay nodded and headed to his car.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

"Yo, Voight!" Jay hopped out of his car and jogged towards his team. About six firetrucks were parked on the property, and two ambulances. The house had clearly burnt down, but the fire was put out.

"Everything taken care of with Dawson?" Voight asked and Jay nodded.

"Good." Voight expressed in relief, "Squad 3 from 51 brought out the body. It was a routine call until they noticed a bullet hole in the poor bastard's head." Voight guided Halstead over to the corpse that was placed into a body bag on a stretcher.

"Damn, this dude is fried." Jay said to himself, "I guess they have to take his teeth out to identify him."

"Erin actually did some investigating and found that a Latino man named Juan Flores owned the property. I'm going to have them pull the teeth anyway just to make sure. it's him." Hank caught Jay up to speed.

Elsewhere, Lindsay was interview Squad 3.

"You're positive this was an oven fire?"

"Yeah, it looks like he was baking a cake." Kelly replied,

"Well, his shooter could have had the common courtesy to turn the oven off for him." Capp chimed in causing Kelly to give him a dirty look that read ' _knock it off '_.

"Alright. We'll keep you updated on how the case is going. Thanks again." Erin said goodbye and Firehouse 51 departed from the scene.

.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

 **.**

 **Author's Note: **Thank you for reading Chapter 6! Make sure to **review, follow,** and **favorite!**


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